An In Depth Interview with Andrea Marr
Since 1999, Andrea Marr has been delivering her brand of feel-good, high energy original funk, groove, blues and soul music around Australia. Through sheer hard work she has earned a place in the thriving Melbourne blues scene as one of its most sought after live acts.
Andrea has established herself as the real deal by winning a number of awards including:
• The 2002 VIC/TAS Female Artist of The Year for her album “Sassified”
• 2005 Blues Performer of The Year Award
With these awards under her belt, Andrea has gone on to become a regular on the Australian Festival Circuit doing headline spots and playing alongside the best acts from Australia and overseas. With the 2005 Blues Performer of The Year Award, she was able to go on to represent Australia in the International Blues challenge in Memphis Tennessee in 2006 to critical acclaim. Her next CD “Watch Me Work It” received international airplay with the title track being included on the US “National Women In Blues” CD that promotes and launches the new wave of US Blues Women. Andrea was the only non-American female included in this compilation.
In 2008, she released her album “Little Sister Got Soul”. The album received rave reviews and international airplay as well as winning the 2009 Australian Female Blues Artist of The Year, the 2009 VIC/TAS Female Blues Artist of The Year and the 2009 VIC/TAS Best Self-Produced Blues CD of The Year. In 2010, Chicago-based blues label “Blue Skunk Music” picked up “Little Sister Got Soul” for re-release in the US and the album hit No.18 on the US Living Blues Charts in February 2011.
In 2012, The Andrea Marr Band won the MBAS Blues Performer of The Year competition and was sent to represent Australia in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis Tennessee’ for the second time. The band reached the semi-finals, playing at the internationally renowned BB King’s Blues Club on Beale Street Memphis.
Andrea then branched out to expand her funk and soul sound and formed “The Funky Hitmen”.
The band is based in Melbourne and features a killer 8 piece line up playing Andrea’s original soul and funky tunes. The EP “Sass & Brass” was released in 2013 by Chicago based record label Blue Skunk Music and received international airplay and critical acclaim.
Then, In 2014, Andrea teamed up with producers Damien Reilly and Danny Saber to work on New York-based writer Michael Jameson’s song “Summer Love”.
Going back to the blues, Andrea Marr Band then released a live album called “Live at the MBAS House Of Blues” in July 2015. The album charted in the top 25 of The Australian Blues and Roots Charts for 6 months, received airplay in the UK and Germany and was picked up by over 160 US blues radio stations. The album was nominated for “Album Of The Year” “Song Of the Year” “Band Of the Year” and “Artist of the Year” in the VIC/TAS Blues Awards and also nominated for “Song Of The Year” for Andrea’s original song “Who Am I To Judge You” at The Australian Blues Music Awards.
A collaboration with Hip/Hop R&B artist Markia created something new for Andrea Marr Fans when her original Gospel R&B song “Grateful” was released in 2015. The song received international airplay and charted in Sri-Lanka’s biggest music program YES FM’s Home Grown Charts – It stayed in the top 15 for 26 weeks in a row, reaching a whole new audience. The song was then picked up by Generation Entertainment and remixed as a soul/house track by New York DJ Lenny Fontana and also by Sydney DJ Sunset Child – release date June 2016.
As Damien Reilly says:
“Andrea is an incredible artist to work with and she has such a powerful soul-filled voice. International success is just around the corner and, with songs like “Summer Love” and working with producers like Danny Saber, everyone is starting to realise just how great a singer Andrea is. We are honoured to be working with her.”
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